So you wanna be a commercial grower?

[ItsGrowTime]

LW, that first picture you posted on this page shows some nice plants growing with lots of well formed buds. Isn't that strange how high they have the lights and for it to produce like it has? I have noticed this in a lot of large scale grows. I wonder why they don't put the lights closer, I am sure it would yieild more. It seems the only people who put the lights close are people doing smaller grows under 8000 watts. Usually anything larger and it seems many keep the lights rather high. I wonder if this is done to make it easier and less time consumming. It is a pain in the ass trying to keep the plants from being burned sometimes. Any other reasons you guys can see? Also, it seems they do rather well at a distance - I wonder if some strains produce more bud under less light?

TGT

Its probably a shit-ton of airy popcorn buds under those decent tops. They put overall mass/weight over quality. I wouldnt want to trim those. I guess not having to raise and lower that many lights makes for quicker setup and lower maintenance.

 

[asher1er]

LW, that first picture you posted on this page shows some nice plants growing with lots of well formed buds. Isn't that strange how high they have the lights and for it to produce like it has? I have noticed this in a lot of large scale grows. I wonder why they don't put the lights closer, I am sure it would yieild more. It seems the only people who put the lights close are people doing smaller grows under 8000 watts. Usually anything larger and it seems many keep the lights rather high. I wonder if this is done to make it easier and less time consumming. It is a pain in the ass trying to keep the plants from being burned sometimes. Any other reasons you guys can see? Also, it seems they do rather well at a distance - I wonder if some strains produce more bud under less light?

TGT

Like IGT said, quicker and lower maintenance. Most commercial grows i've seen all have them just bolted to the roof, one set height the whole way through...... Most veg with the same HPS light and want the stretch

 

[LiLWaynE]

LW, that first picture you posted on this page shows some nice plants growing with lots of well formed buds. Isn't that strange how high they have the lights and for it to produce like it has? I have noticed this in a lot of large scale grows. I wonder why they don't put the lights closer, I am sure it would yieild more. It seems the only people who put the lights close are people doing smaller grows under 8000 watts. Usually anything larger and it seems many keep the lights rather high. I wonder if this is done to make it easier and less time consumming. It is a pain in the ass trying to keep the plants from being burned sometimes. Any other reasons you guys can see? Also, it seems they do rather well at a distance - I wonder if some strains produce more bud under less light?

TGT

Bro, as the years have gone by, growing has become more advanced. Alot of new techniques and devices are being implemented by todays commercial growers as opposed to say 5 years ago. I am pretty sure alot of the pictures are outdated, so therefore if I were you, I would not try to emulate anything in these pictures...

The real deal commercial growers do not allow pictures or secrets out....

i can only imagine what So Quick is up to these days...

 

[EddieShoestring]

power company's etc etc.......

yeah i know Swampy. But thanks for reminding me. I'll just pop out and tell the commercial boys that they are going to have to shut everything down because they are just being stupid and taking uneccessary risks....

i'll check in later to let you know how i got on

eddie

 

[asher1er]

Bro, as the years have gone by, growing has become more advanced. Alot of new techniques and devices are being implemented by todays commercial growers as opposed to say 5 years ago. I am pretty sure alot of the pictures are outdated, so therefore if I were you, I would not try to emulate anything in these pictures...

The real deal commercial growers do not allow pictures or secrets out....

i can only imagine what So Quick is up to these days...

till this day i still see some commercial setups that just have the lights bolted to the roof of the room, a good bit under the 50watt psf guideline and still put out good yields, usually with the local haze strain floating around...

TGT if im not mistaken some people on the board have found out that SamTheSkunkMans Orig Thai haze likes less light so who knows..

 

[Sinfuldreams]

Correct

Correct

well, i disagreed in that other thread, and i'll disagree here. one bust in Austin, Nazi Texas does not a good example make. Each locality is different, as BritishColumbia makes very clear. So if you live in Texas, watch out, but not necessarily true at all that huge power bills are an issue everywhere. Really. Once the peak oil/peak electric shit hits the fan and the Pres of the US tells everyone to start conserving so we don't enter the Second Dark Ages, I will be worried about widespread power monitoring. But with George "use all the energy humanly possible for the simplest tasks so my cronies make more money" Bush up top, there is zero pressure to reduce usage, and thus zero fed money to bust big energy users. But whatever, everyone shouldn't go out and be commercial as a result of this, it take HUGE brass balls and a BIG BRAIN to pull off. Pussies and retards need not apply; but plenty of retards do it anyway, and get nailed.

Good points in that post
Pay your power bills, if you want to go BIG Commercial don't use a house, get your self a nice empty Small Business building. Can be anything you want it to be. Perhaps you make Electric Advertising Signs. In the right part of town NO ONE will ever wonder what your doing any way. I've seen dozens of buildings with no signs, no clue as to what they do, a car or two in the lot, few windows, fewer doors, and the Power Company could care less.
The Local Cop might be interested as to why he never sees anyone, or the cars never move...... I know of one property thats been " For Sale" for years now.. of course no one ever calls to buy it as it's not listed in the MLS and no Agents involved... Not that it IS a grow op in there.... but if there was, Man Only a Grower, or a Determined Uber Cop would ever even think about it.
Pay your bills and Blend in, the bigger you go the bigger you have to think.
theres been 3 busts in our woods recently, ALL 1000 plant or bigger in you guessed it UPSCALE McMansions. Stolen electric, super HOT roofs Steaming in the Cold Winter air and no snow on the roof, neighbors call the Fire Dept. who check it out and wonder why the air BLOWING out the eves is Sooooo Hot, that they call the Police!

Remember also 1 mans Idea of what a Commercial grow is, is not another mans Idea, 1000 is SMALL in MY View of a Commercial Op, yet still certainly can be viewed as Commercial.

The Power Company is the LEAST of your worries, unless of course your stealing it.

Sin

 

[TGT]

I have had multiple grows for a long time now in many different locations and each place is in a residential home. I usually use anywhere between 500 to 800 dollars evey two months and have never had a problem at all with the power company becoming suspicious. Around here our power is only .07 a Kw, so were pretty lucky. Also we pay every two months. If paid on time you are just a number in their computer system. Once a payment is late is when your bill is flagged and human eyes see it. Pay on time all the time and all will be well.

TGT

 

[EddieShoestring]

guys, the thing is that most of the commercial canna in the UK is grown by crews in residential locations and it appears, from reports by the press/cops, that alot of them nick the power. If this IS the case then it will not be because these crews are 'dumb' -they are professionals who will have made an informed assessment of the risks in paying versus not paying-and have decided on the latter as being the safest option.
I'm not advocating, or endorsing, this practice-just pointing out that if everyone followed the guidelines for commercial growing outlined in this thread then there would be no weed........................................

eddie

 

[bambam]

WoW i dont care that this shit is old as hell..............Who the hell does this? 10,000watts, 26kwatts,+ + + 100fking lbs in two months? Are you kidding me guys who the hell wants or has to do this? What happen to 2000watts of hps in a 4x8 room kicking out some 2-3lbs of grade A+? This is about the point that i would start to get nervus about growing! Guess the commercial thing is not for me but then agian 2/3elbows sounds pretty commercial if you ask me and you are just one person growing and putting in work? NO? Sounds like we should be calling this Super Commercial cause to me thats what it is! Good GD luck to anyone with the balls and brains to pull this off!

 

[Kush King]

Why do you need a gen to run 20kw,i know to people that have $1000+ hydro bills on a 2 month billing cycle and were paying seven cents per kwh.Around here the average resident pays $150 for a 2 month bill.Buddy runs 16 lights on a flip has a hot tub 4 kids and another runs 20 light in a vacant house and this is b.c.,i don't know what you guys are worried about,shit my bill is $800 in the summer.Very few judges give warrants for a high bill.

it wont be to mutch longer befor he gets shut down anyone over 98 kw
per hour gets put under a list in bc THERES JUST SO MANY FUKING HOUSE over the rate that it will take sum time to get to them all. and NOW sinc the new bill has past YOU DONT NEED A JUDGE to pass for a warrent the police contact the fire department and they come with a 24 hour notice (usto be 48) IF YOU dont get back to the number within 24 hours to book a appointment within the week Power shut off and doors kicked in. AND YA IM IN BC!

 

[BlindDate]

get your self a nice empty Small Business building. Can be anything you want it to be. Perhaps you make Electric Advertising Signs. In the right part of town NO ONE will ever wonder what your doing any way. I've seen dozens of buildings with no signs, no clue as to what they do, a car or two in the lot, few windows, fewer doors, and the Power Company could care less.

That is the worst advice I've heard in this thread. All commercial buildings are subject to regular fire inspections by city code. That is why the Vietnamese gangs go private residence.

 

[ChaosCatalunya]

guys, the thing is that most of the commercial canna in the UK is grown by crews in residential locations and it appears, from reports by the press/cops, that alot of them nick the power. If this IS the case then it will not be because these crews are 'dumb' -they are professionals who will have made an informed assessment of the risks in paying versus not paying-and have decided on the latter as being the safest option.
I'm not advocating, or endorsing, this practice-just pointing out that if everyone followed the guidelines for commercial growing outlined in this thread then there would be no weed........................................

eddie

Eddie, I am not so sure about the "crews" being so professional. I have heard many stories of people paying stupid big bills with no problems at all... one guy who was paying over £100 a week into a keymeter sticks in my mind. I cannot remember hearing of anybody who got a knock over the electric use in the UK, plenty whose misfortunes stem from nicking it though.

Big industrial sized gardens always look fantastic, great photos Wayne, but you always need a lot of help and increase your risk massively involving others. Many growers would be better off doing 10M² in a secure house and just fronting any questions that may arise, than hiring out industrial units telling hundreds of lies, hoping it all goes well, but then getting seriously fucked if it does not.

^ This is really more for UK growers, power companies and laws make things different in other countries.

 

[British_Bulldog]

Eddie, it is the dumb ones who steal power and get caught.

Having read the forums for 8 years, the advice from every good commercial grower online has been to always pay the electric bill on time, and have a good cover story.

The other good thing about the UK is that the electricity market is deregulated, so you can switch from supplier to supplier, to avoid one getting too suspicious, and always pay quarterly with cash at the post office.

The staff there will get a shock at the bill, but just do it away from your neighbourhood - i.e. Don't Shit On Your Own Doorstep.

The only other way to pay is by card online, or by ringing the power company up and paying by card, but both ways leave more of a paper trail, and having to explain why your bill is hundreds of pounds a month to a phone monkey is a trial in itself....and usually leads to a barrage of questions about "dual fuel options, direct debits, different schemes,etc".

The best way in fact is to have your electric and gas from different suppliers, and tell the electric company everything is running on electric, like the heaters, cooker, oven, shower, dishwasher, washing machine etc, when really that's all on gas, and if the grow is big, then tell them you also have servers/an arc welder/lots of electrical equipment.

In reality, you use gas as much as possible, plus you wash your dishes by hand and do your laundry at the launderette.

Only dumbasses steal power, and they're the ones who get caught.

Most of the busted growers get done in this way.


Peace

 

[ChaosCatalunya]

Eddie, it is the dumb ones who steal power and get caught.

Having read the forums for 8 years, the advice from every good commercial grower online has been to always pay the electric bill on time, and have a good cover story.

The other good thing about the UK is that the electricity market is deregulated, so you can switch from supplier to supplier, to avoid one getting too suspicious, and always pay quarterly with cash at the post office.

The staff there will get a shock at the bill, but just do it away from your neighbourhood - i.e. Don't Shit On Your Own Doorstep.

The only other way to pay is by card online, or by ringing the power company up and paying by card, but both ways leave more of a paper trail, and having to explain why your bill is hundreds of pounds a month to a phone monkey is a trial in itself....and usually leads to a barrage of questions about "dual fuel options, direct debits, different schemes,etc".

The best way in fact is to have your electric and gas from different suppliers, and tell the electric company everything is running on electric, like the heaters, cooker, oven, shower, dishwasher, washing machine etc, when really that's all on gas, and if the grow is big, then tell them you also have servers/an arc welder/lots of electrical equipment.

In reality, you use gas as much as possible, plus you wash your dishes by hand and do your laundry at the launderette.

Only dumbasses steal power, and they're the ones who get caught.

Most of the busted growers get done in this way.


Peace

Top tips BB, I really like the one about separating your suppliers.

The other thing to remember for UK growers is that meter readings have changed, now it is often a independent guy who comes round doing this. They now seem to like reading a bit more than before and can get shirty if they do not get 1 reading a year. This can be done by you, so keep right on top of your meter, the numbers it uses so you can give your [possibly massaged] readings really authentic feel.... One friend does 3 biggies a year and shuts down for the other 6 months, electric use is high, but not alarming [....average...] he gets to go on holiday and lead a normal life and the meter reader never gets round at the right time to see the meter spinning at 25,000 rpm...

 

[British_Bulldog]

Top tips BB, I really like the one about separating your suppliers.

The other thing to remember for UK growers is that meter readings have changed, now it is often a independent guy who comes round doing this. They now seem to like reading a bit more than before and can get shirty if they do not get 1 reading a year. This can be done by you, so keep right on top of your meter, the numbers it uses so you can give your [possibly massaged] readings really authentic feel.... One friend does 3 biggies a year and shuts down for the other 6 months, electric use is high, but not alarming [....average...] he gets to go on holiday and lead a normal life and the meter reader never gets round at the right time to see the meter spinning at 25,000 rpm...

Cool CC, I'm happy to share my knowledge.

About the meter readings, yes this can be a problem...but not if you're on the ball.

We're talking about mechanical readings here, and when the meter reader comes around, he will leave a card if you're not in. Fill out the reading (you want) on the card and sellotape it inside the porch/front window, so when he comes back he gets his reading.

Of course, if you're sophisticated enough, you can plan out what you're going to tell them and when, but it always must look feasible, and not suspicious.

If he does catch you in, and you have lights on and the meter turning like a spinning top DO NOT LET THEM IN! ==> just say it's not convenient to come in right now, due to a family problem. If he pushes it, be firm but polite and say you can do it later and stick the card in the downstairs/porch window.


Peace

 

[yamaha_1fan]

That is the worst advice I've heard in this thread. All commercial buildings are subject to regular fire inspections by city code. That is why the Vietnamese gangs go private residence.

wrong. The building only needs inspection if there is a business there and holds a city license.

I have had multiple warehouses for legit and non legit purposes. I always had a county license on the legit stuff but never a city license. Never had any licenses on the warehouse used for growing. NEVER had an inspection until I applied for a city license. Then a series of inspectors came out and they never revisited.

I have seen several 1500-4000 sq ft warehouses used for personal reasons, storing cars, personal items etc. Cant go into details.

Growing in a warehouse really is not a bad idea, you have free open space to build how you want, plenty of electrical capacity, and no questions asked. You can come and go as you want. Put a old camaro, mustang, etc in there with a tool box and you have a perfect cover story.

Power company wants to know why you use so much electricity? You are running a gaming hosting service, each server draws 1200 watts, blah, blah, blah


The only catch to commercial space is its rented and you usally have an onsite landlord. I have had the landlord walk in to collect rent, and also was refinancing the property and had an appraiser walk through.

 

[Sheeba]

awsome thread guys! Great info here.

 

[TGT]

I think the warehouse idea sounds very good, although I have no experience with that yet. May be in the future. Things seem to go good with numerous smaller grows in residential homes. Even if you wanted to go small, you could have a 4 - 1000 watt grow going that makes at least 6 pounds every 2 months. At $2000.00 a pound that is $12,000.00 every two months, so $6000.00 a month. Not a bad income by any means and that is being conservative. It is especially when you don't have to pay tax. So you have three of these going which is very easy to manage by yourself (although it will be close to a full time job) thats $18,000.00 a month! Enough to make anyone comfortable. And like I said, that is being conservative.

I find there is much less risk doing it this way, at least that is what I have decided. I have not tried larger grows in a warehouse and if it was not too risky like it seems some people are saying, I could see it being very beneficial and being less work with it all in one place. All is I know is three small grows at different locations can make someone very good money.

Just my experience. I think a large grow would be nice. I was thinking more along the lines of a farm house with a generator. A friend does this with 20 lights and he has been doing it for a long time now no problem. Gas prices are rdiculous though, so that is cutting into his profit. But what he makes he shouldn't be complaining.

TGT

 

[Sinfuldreams]

House or warehouse

House or warehouse

I'm not saying anyone SHOULD do anything, get a grip.
From what I've seen real world.... IF you re going to grow MORE than a few hundred Plants, lets say 1000, like So many People are BUSTED for, in Basements in Homes, think about going to a Business building.

1st this thread is about COMMERCIAL grow ops, at least a few hundred in MY VIEW.

2nd, so these folks will have the where with all to it right the 1st time.

3rd, you only need ONE harvest and move on.

There is nothing wrong with using a HOME, But Be responsible for the place.
TGT uses or used a few houses and that's AOK in my book! ( Just Fine ) So this is no slam on you TGT.

I ran into a place these guys where using, and MOLD EVERY F'n Place in the house! At least they bleached and Kitz'd it,and it will still come back, but it didn't need to go that far. If they had just used some common sense.

So all I'm saying is Be a good citizen, think about who May live in that house after your gone.. would yo uwant your wife and kids living there when all is said and done?
We do need to think about our image.

Sin

 

[sneakyninja]

Which raises a good question: What about a properly done grow (humidity, temp etc. controlled) creates mold in a residential building?